I made shrub this week and it was a big hit in the household. After a couple of weeks of (maybe too much) alcohol consumption, I wanted a fun drink but also wanted to have a proper nights sleep. Although, at the time of writing, I say this on the eve of a trip to the chianti region so I’m definitely full of shit. But regardless, here in comes the $hrub.
What is shrub???
What was once an everyday and even boring beverage that graced the households of even the poorest Victorian families, is now a trendy and edgy mocktail that blogs and magazines headline as “have you ever tried this thing called drinking vinegar🤪???”. Well here in lies shrub. A fruity, and tangy syrup infused with vinegar that can be added to bubbly water, deserts, cocktails, dressings, you name it.
Shrub is super simple. Normally, it’s a 1:1:1 ratio of fruit, sugar, and vinegar left to infuse overnight to a couple of days. You then strain out the fruit and boom, that’s shrub. Shrub is not specifically a fermented beverage, but rather takes fermented elements to create a hybrid of sorts. Not fully fermented but not not fermented.
Shrub has roots that date back to 17th century England and colonial America. Before refrigeration became a run of the mill appliance, vinegar was used as a prime method for preserving fruits and vegetables for the winter season- and would also help stave off nutrient deficiencies like scurvy. Since we don’t have to deal with such ailments and worries anymore shrub is an excellent way to add a deeper, funkier dimension to beverages.
Shrub is crazy easy to make! As long as you have a fruit, vinegar, and sugar, you can make your own. It’s still rhubarb season so of course it’s essential to relish it.
Here it goes:
Aquire Rhubarb ✅
Prepare Rhubarb
This part is stupid easy. But please make sure to not eat the greens of the rhubarb because they are toxic!!! Don’t try to be a hero by repurposing them for a pesto or a salad. Just compost them and say good riddance. I actually don’t know what will happen to you if you eat them, google says gastro-intestinal problems and in some cases kidney failure. Go figure.
Make your syrup
To do this we employ the (Korean) cheong method which entails using equal weight in sugar to fruit. The sugar naturally pulls moisture out of the fruit creating a flavorful, aromatic, and dense syrup. Cheong is far more complex than making a syrup for a shrub, but the initial premise stays the same.
Sugar works quickly on fruit and in this case, you need not wait very long for a dense syrup to form. .
After 15 minutes
After 30 minutes
After 2 hours
Overnight
Add the vinegar
Once you add the vinegar its up to you on how long you want to infuse the syrup. The longer you go, the more infused all the ingredients will be. I let my mix sit overnight in the fridge.
I like to use raw apple cider vinegar because of its funky properties. But any vinegar will suffice. Balsamic even.
Strain
Bottle
And there you have it. That’s shrub. Simple, quick, and easy just like u ;;;)
~Fin~
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